Kindness
Patience
Love
Growth
Respect
Maria Lidia Villafranco
Owner
I’m called Ari by my daycare children. I also go by Mari & Lily my name is Maria Lidia Villafranco, my husband’s name is Jose and we have 3 children Melannie, Adrian and our youngest Aiden who other than school breaks attend school full-time. We also have 3 family dogs 2 German Shepherds Chema and Chase and a small dog named Oreo and who the children will have most exposure too. Which they are all licensed and immunized.
My passion for family Well-Being and child development started many years ago, with me being a full time working parent and student. Working in a field were children’s proper growth and nourishment was a priority and being fascinated on the importance of proper child development guidance and fundamentals of a great nutrition. My work background goes back to 7 years working for our local WIC Program as Woman, Infant and children Nutritionist and Certified Lactation Educator/Parent Coach. My career transition me to we’re I closely work with families helping achieve their goals and providing the guidance to adequate and quality child care. Working with diverse backgrounds, cultures and beliefs empowering parents on becoming their children first teacher as a parent educator. I have extensive knowledge on early childhood education and development, children and infants nutrition and community well being.
About Us
We began Tiny Hands Villafranco Family Daycare back in 2018, while working for many years out in the field having to drive out of her home town in a rural community where quality childcare was very hard to find Maria Villafranco Founder/CEO faced the struggle to find a safe and nurturing place for her 3 children close to their schools and home. Everything was so far out of town and the classroom was filled with children, my older ones didn’t have school transportation.
Maria embarked on a dream to open a family child care where children can be cared for safely and nurtured, in a home atmosphere while developing their lifelong love for learning most importantly close to home. Maria has been well known for over a decade in the community working with different community programs with families as a certified child & infant nutritionist, CLE and parent educator. Maria has years of experience in Early Childhood development. One day while attending a training at the first 5 LA she volunteered at the childcare station, she saw her working with the children directly soon to become a passion. Helping children who need constant nursing care or intervention was more rewarding than anything else she had done. She recently received certification From CA State University San Bernardino in Early Childhood Administration and Leadership.
Our home consists of my husband José, and 3 children Melannie (adult child), Adrian and Aiden. Jose is Co-Owner/Licensee which works out of the home, maintains all his certifications to provide care when needed and makes sure to keep the facility/home cleaned and up to code. Melannie, who is our assistant, has grown to love the field in early childhood development and looks forward to a career working with children. As for my son Adrian, a High School Athlete who enjoys teaching children about sports. Aiden the youngest attends school during the day and after school helps mom to run daycare.
Mission & Values
The mission of Tiny Hands Villafranco Family Daycare is to create a stimulating and nurturing environment where children of all abilities, regardless of socio-economic or cultural background, can grow and learn together in acceptance of one another.
Our mission is to provide a caring, warm and safe environment for children to enjoy developmentally appropriate play experiences.
Here, we create bonds that nurture confidence and a lifelong love of learning. As part of our mission to cultivate a welcoming community, we model kindness and empathy. Every child deserves to feel safe, represented, and accepted in an inclusive environment that includes:
Diversity, vital to learning.
Engaging, educational experiences.
Spaces that reflect our diverse communities.
Diversity, vital to learning.
Engaging, educational experiences.
Spaces that reflect our diverse communities.
Vision
We care for children in an environment where learning is fun so that love of learning is the foundation for a child’s life.We provide a safe and nurturing environment while parents are at work.
We help children to develop the skills required to succeed in school. Through engagement with local schools we make transition to school seamless which sets them up for success.We create play based learning environments that allow children to learn through discovery and experimentation. We oversee children’s play to encourage enquiry and secure children’s safety at all times.
At Tiny Hands Villafranco Family Daycare we value the importance of character, commitment to the family, commitment to the community, respect for the individual, and celebrating our differences.
Philosophy
Tiny Hands Villafranco Family Daycare Philosophy is based on a belief that children of all abilities benefit from an inclusive environment, emphasizing acceptance of individual differences and ability levels.
inclusion facilitates developmental progress by exposure to role modeling of social, language, and physical skills through interactions with typically developing peers. We also believe that the typically developing children gain solid interpersonal skills, including self-confidence, acceptance, empathy, and communication. Inclusion allows all children to relate and interact with peers in play and daily routines, engaging in experiences that promote the development of self-help skills, self-control, and the understanding that others have different backgrounds and perspectives than themselves.